Towards that end, he said the government has commenced the development and operation of an on-dock container multi-purpose terminal with a container quay of 16-metre draft to accommodate bigger vessels.

“The first phase of the dry bulk jetty, which involves the construction of the 600-metre quay wall, was completed. The second phase of an additional 200-metre quay wall will commence in 2019,” Mr Ofori-Atta disclosed this during the presentation of the 2019 Budget and Economic Statement to Parliament in Accra on November 15.

 

Takoradi was the country’s original commercial port.

According to the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA), the port had been handling approximately 30 per cent of Ghana’s seaborne traffic, 66 per cent of national exports and 19 per cent of national imports.

Leading exports include manganese, bauxite, forest products, mining equipment and bulk and bagged cocoa beans.

Ghana’s aluminium ore exports amounted to 965, 000 tonnes in 2015, manganese ore exports amounted to 1.3 million tonnes and cocoa beans to 650 000 tonnes.

Leading imports include clinker, wheat, petroleum products and containerised cargo.

The port has dedicated manganese, bauxite and oil berths.

The current deep-water development at Takoradi follows the discovery of offshore oil and gas by Tullow and others and is being developed as an oil and gas logistics centre.

An oil and gas free zone oilfields services hub is being established through a dredging backfill to create more land.

Mr Ofori-Atta stated that the move was to convert Ghana into an oil and gas hub for West Africa.

 

The Takoradi Port has a three-year master plan in place, which was developed in 2014.

The plan intends to improve the dredging of access channel, building additional breakwater, reclaiming land, construction of new berths, which will include a dedicated manganese, bauxite, clinker and limestone jetty and new landslide side infrastructure and building of new offshore oil base.

The plan also seeks to develop a floating facility, a shipyard, a 300-metre quay and fabrication yards for light and heavy industries.

 

Beyond the development of Takoradi Port, the minister said the government had also facilitated the construction of the Anloga fish landing site to enhance the productivity of fishers.

In addition, he stated that detailed construction designs and environmental impact assessment studies were completed for landing sites at Teshie, Axim, Winneba, Mumford and a fishing harbour complex at James Town.

“Actual construction of these landing sites, as well as the Phase II of the Anomabo Fisheries College, will commence in 2019,” he added.

 

 

The minister also stated that the government had completed the first phase of the Elmina Fishing Port Rehabilitation and Expansion project, which included upgrading the existing fishing port, as well as the construction of a new port with a basin area and a quay wall for vessels to moor and offload.

 

He said the second phase of the project, which would commence in 2019, would entail the construction of new facilities such as shed for the fish market, fishing net mending and the construction of a new slipway for bigger vessels with a boat refurbishment area.

“As part of the overall strategy to position Ghana as a transport and logistics hub, the government will continue to develop port infrastructure through the construction of new container terminals at the Tema Port.

“This is to increase container handling capacity, provide additional berths, reduce waiting time and ensure quick access to the port. The first berth with a depth weight capacity of 16.0 metre is 42 per cent complete and is scheduled to be operational by 2019,” he added. —GB